Conservation Law Foundation Puts GDF Suez on Notice for Clean Air Act Violations at Mt. Tom Station

Plant has also Been Fined by EPA for Clean Water Act Violations

CONTACT:
Karen Wood:  (617) 850-1722 or kwood@clf.org
Shanna Cleveland:  (617) 850-1716 or scleveland@clf.org

BOSTON, MA  February 8, 2011 – Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) today announced that it intends to file a federal Clean Air Act citizen suit against Mt. Tom Generating Company, FirstLight Power Resources and GDF Suez North America, the owners of Mt. Tom Station, a 50-year-old coal-fired power plant in Holyoke, Massachusetts, for ongoing exceedances of air pollution limits and monitoring violations at the plant. The violations at the center of CLF’s challenge relate to opacity – the measure of particulate matter, or soot, emitted from the plant’s smokestacks – which is regulated under the Clean Air Act to protect public health and the environment.

According to FirstLight’s own quarterly reports of mandatory monitoring at Mt. Tom Station, the plant has a total of 2,484 separate violations of opacity emission limits occurring from January 2005 through June 2010. The plant reported violations of air pollution limits in every quarter during that period. CLF also contends that additional violations likely occurred during times when the plant’s opacity monitors were not operating.

Shanna Cleveland, staff attorney at CLF, said, “Mt. Tom is one of the top five sources of toxic emissions in the state of Massachusetts. The soot Mt. Tom releases contains dangerous pollutants that threaten the health of everyone who breathes them—particularly children and the elderly. Despite recent investments in new technology, this plant is unable to operate in compliance with the law, and, therefore within the limits of what is considered safe for human health.”

Particulate matter is a mixture of small particles, including organic chemicals, metals and ash, which can cause severe health problems when inhaled. Particulate matter has been linked to increased hospitalizations, lung damage in infants and children, and premature death.

Despite new air pollution controls, Mt. Tom still released more than 300,000 pounds of toxic chemicals in 2009, according to EPA reports.  Mt. Tom also has been fined by the EPA twice in the last six months for illegal discharges into the Connecticut River.

“Mt. Tom is a textbook example of the significant public health and environmental impacts from burning coal in aging power plants regardless of investments in pollution controls,” Cleveland continued.  “The investments required to bring Mt. Tom into compliance with the current and impending EPA rules would be far better spent implementing clean energy solutions like energy efficiency, conservation, wind and solar energy.  With the writing on the wall for old coal, we need to be planning ahead – not just to keep the lights on, but to create economic opportunity. We are looking forward to working with the city and people of Holyoke to open the door to a cleaner, more lucrative and sustainable energy future for this community and the surrounding area.”

Mt. Tom is located on 80 acres of land along the banks of the Connecticut River in the picturesque Pioneer Valley. The 146 MW plant, which provides electricity to Holyoke and the surrounding area, employs approximately 50 people.

CLF intends to sue any time after 60 days from today.

Background on Coal-Free New England

CLF is working towards a coal-free New England by 2020. For more than 20 years, CLF has held the region’s coal-fired power plants accountable for violations of clean air and water laws, while winning tougher regulations to protect the environment and public health. CLF filed the appeals of state permits that resulted in the 2010 shutdown of Somerset Station, in Somerset, Massachusetts, and is currently in litigation with Salem Harbor Station in Salem, Massachusetts and Merrimack Station in Bow, New Hampshire. With its tenacious legal advocacy, policy initiatives and regulatory expertise, CLF is applying pressure in all the right places to rid New England of old, dirty coal plants, keep the lights on at reasonable cost, and make way for clean renewable energy to power our region.

The Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) protects New England’s environment for the benefit of all people. Using the law, science and the market, CLF creates solutions that preserve natural resources, build healthy communities, and sustain a vibrant economy region-wide. Founded in1966, CLF is a nonprofit, member-supported organization with offices in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont.